You don’t need this NES Zapper turned DIY lighting remote — but you want it

As Nintendo proved with the NES Classic Edition, it’s still the retro hardware that captures our attention. And as YouTuber Warner Skoch shows, it may still have some utility.

Skoch, who goes by Sudomod, used a Zapper — the criminally underused gun from the original NES — to create a fully-functioning remote lighting system. A simple trigger pull aimed at an 8-bit duck target acts as a remote control to turn a lamp on or off.

He even posted the plans online if you want to try this yourself. Fair warning, there’s a fair bit of hacker stuff that gives people fits — soldering, wiring, and programming an Arduino. Don’t worry though, there’s a written step-by-step guide (or a video) to hold your hand throughout the process.

Skoch’s creation uses the original Zapper from the NES but suggests a knock-off should work just fine. If you don’t have your original, the Zapper is still available all over the web either in OEM or clone form. It’s rather cheap too.